"MapleStory; The Perfect Time Killer"

I have never made a video game review, or any review for that matter. I have however been playing video games for around 17 years now. I have always loved gaming for many reasons, but my favorite thing has always been the way video games simply kill time. I have always had lots of free time, and a very short attention span. Basically video games are targeted at people like myself. Anywho, let's cut the filler and jump into the subject at hand: MapleStory.

MapleStory is an incredibly aesthetically pleasing MMORPG, in other words you basically spam an attack for a few hours and level up every once in a while, and if you're lucky you'll be able to put on some new shiny armor.

MapleStory is a very standard MMO in that the leveling, also known as the 'grind' is almost literally endless. Maple stands out though. Maple has been around for quite a while now, as in 3+ years for several versions, and yet throughout all of the many version of Maple, there are still just a handful of legitimate level 200 players.

Anywho, time for the score breakdown.

Storyline: 2/10. Let's be honest, it's non-existent. The closest thing to a storyline is a few almost related quests and events. It's particularly intriguing considering the game has the word story in the damned title. Don't be fooled though, there is seriously no story here. Moving on.

Sound: 7/10. The music isn't at all bad, it's just that after a few hours of listening to the same two or three songs, you'll basically want to shoot yourself. Windows Media Player and personal MP3 players are your friend, use them.

Graphics: 10/10. I absolutely love the graphics. The developers of MapleStory didn't go for the common pseudo realistic graphics, and instead went with an anime-esque style. Seriously, the graphics are absolutely flawless.

Controls: 8/10. They aren't perfect, but they are very easy to learn and get use to. Although I am too cheap to try it, apparently using a PS2 or othertype of console/PC controller make it even better.

Rule Enforcers: 10/10. Seriously, things have certainly changed within the last few months. Hacking use to be absurdly rampant, but now it is nearly non existent. Bravo GMs.

Community: 3/10. It's absolutely awful. This is the single biggest problem with the game. The community primarily consists of greedy illiterate people that have absolutely no idea what the words 'respect' and 'common courtesy' mean. Get use to lots of 'CC PLZZZZ'

Overall: 40/60. Honestly, the game itself is quite a bit better than a ~6.5/10, the technical score is just skewed by the storyline's paltry 2/10. To be perfectly honest though, if you're playing an MMORPG for the story, you're doing something wrong.

MapleStory is definitely worth a try. Make sure to follow a guide and skill build though, it's very easy to mess up when you aren't sure what you're doing. Also if you do play, please try to make the community a little bit better. I know the mindless idiots can be frustrating, but try not to sink to their level. It just contributes to the already pathetic community. Be nice to everyone, even if the respect isn't returned.